Mind the gap
by ChibiChen
Summary: Written as a bet between me and the Walfas station wagon. What happens when a normal mechanical technician gets sent to Gensokyo, without being gaped in? Finished, and being made into a feature length Walfas film by the creator of Diamond in the Rough, Spaztique!
1. Down the rabbit hole

_**Mind the Gap.**_

_**A touhou fan fiction.**_

_**Ch 1: Down the Rabbit hole.**_

The night wasn't very dark, the street was clear, except for one single car that speed down the black asphalt. "Ugh, it's almost 2 in the morning. How does he expect me to get some sleep and be back at work at 8 Am?" The one driving in the car said, his eyes barely open as he slowed to a stop in the driveway of his apartment. He walked up the steps to room 125 and yawned, pulling out his keyring. It took him a few moments to find the right key, a moment to wake himself up enough to put the key in the lock and turn it, then stumble into the door, pushing it shut with his keys still inside the lock.

"Oh man I could use a good night's sleep." The man said, then walked the familiar path to his bed. He stumbled a little when his foot caught something, nearly tripping, but catching himself on something solid before he lost his balance completely. A few more steps, and he fell over, landing on something and going out like a light. "My bed feels like...leaves." The young man mumbled before falling into unconsciousness.

With a sigh, a familiar shrine maiden put down her rake. Leaves were starting to gather at the shrine and if nothing else, she had to get them out of the path. She had put them off to the end of the day, and this was about as late as she could put it off. Looking down the path, she gave herself a little smile, and stood to go make some tea. She stepped to the sliding screen door in the front of the shrine, and turned back, something catching her attention. A soft whisper, and the sound of crunching leaves. Her face distorted into some sort of mix of shock and anger as she rushed down the path.

Reimu nearly had a aneurism right there, once she laid eyes on the one who had fallen into the leaves. "Not another one!" She held her head as she looked down to the young man. She sighed loudly, then started to look over him as she decided whether to kill him now and prevent what ever 'incident' he would undoubtedly end up causing.

The young man was dressed simply. A white shirt stained with black and slightly at the end of the sleeves. Blue jeans cover his legs, well worn and singed in places. Black shoes that looked something like boots were covering his feet. Light brown hair covered his head, not much longer than a few inches, and messy with leaves. He looked to be sleeping, even with a rock jabbing him in the side. He didn't look dangerous, but some of the most dangerous beings in Gensokyo looked like they were harmless. Despite The intense desire to kill him, Remiu grabbed one of his arms, pulling him to the shrine to let him sleep inside. She would be having a talk with Yukari about this later.


	2. Rock Bed

_**Ch. 2: Rock bed**_

"I feel like I slept on a rock..." The young man groaned, his hand coming out from under the blanket that covered him, efore rising, shaking out his hair in a futile attempt to make his senses return to him faster, or at least to make his eyes adjust. He overheard some sort of argument from the next room, but he had no idea who would possibly be fighting in the next room of his house. 'Unless Jackie met one of my coworkers...How much did I drink last night?" He pondered the thought for a moment before shaking it from his head and pushing off the blanket.

He was greeted by a strange sight, a room not his own, a bed not his own, and even clothin...Wait no those were still his. Where was he? Who's room was this? And why did someone pull him from his apartment, dragged him to god knows where, and left him...completely untied and laying in a bed that couldn't have held him to anything if it tried? 'What the hell is going on here?' He thought, walking slowly to the wall, searching for a door. "Where is a door when you nee-shit!" He yelled out, his weight more than enough to rip through the flimsy screen.

The two women on the other side were fighting like cats and dogs. A yellow-haired girl, and a black-haired girl where bickering about something he couldn't make out, but they stopped as soon as Issac fell through the screen door. He looked up to them sheepishly, then tried to back away, Seeing it would do no good, he stood, brushed himself off and looked to them. 'I'm dead!' He whimpered to himself.

The first of the two, the black-haired one, approached him, looking up to him a look on her face that said she would kill him if he said the wrong word. "Are you sure you have not seen this boy before?" She said, letting the boy stand before her as she spoke. Despite being taller than her, Issac was a bit terrified of this woman. She seemed to be one who you wouldn't mess with unless you had a death wish.

"Very sure. You know I generally keep them inside my home until they are stupid enough to go wandering. If you say you found him walking around outside the shrine, he is not one of mine." The blond hair one said, tightening her grip on the parasol that stood in front of her. It seemed what she said was... annoying her. 'Them? What the hell do they mean by that?!" Issac's head felt like a pinball machine, thoughts bouncing around with every thing heard. "Excuse me, but...Where am I?" He asked quietly, then wished he hadn't, as both women were glaring at him.

"I suppose I shall." The blond woman said, pulling the point of her parasol off the ground and putting it to rest on her shoulder. "You are in Gensokyo, a place separated from your 'normal' world by...well, that's not important. What is important is you are now here, and we aren't quite sure how you got here." She said, looking like that fact she didn't know why he was there annoyed her more than the fact he was there. "But right now there is a much more pressing matter to attend too."

With that, a black line formed on the wall. Issac blinked, thinking his eyes were playing tricks on him before the line opened up, showing a purple space with some sort of things inside. Issac didn't that good of a look before the two women walked into the wall and vanished, the opening becoming a line again, then vanishing. 'That...was trippy.' He blinked, then went to the open door next to the wall that had opened up.


	3. Birds of a feather

_**Ch 3: Birds of a feather**_

With a quick glance out the door, Issac sighed and walked through, trying to figure out where he was. 'That woman said... Gensokyo...But I've never seen that on a map or anything. It wouldn't surprise me if they tried to mess with my head by saying that...But why would they just leave if they had kidnapped me...None of this makes sense.' He thought, putting a hand on his head and letting out a deep sigh. 'Sitting here for them to come back probably won't get me any where. Might as well explore...If I'm lucky I'll find a phone and be able to get some help.'

With the first few steps outside, Issac noticed two things immediately. The first thing was a metal object on the ground at the bottom of the stairs, something that made him a bit happier about his situation. "Hey...It's my wrench..." He said then blinked and picked it up. 'Who was I talking to?' He thought before sliding the wrench into his belt. The other thing he noticed, was exactly what the building he was standing in front of was.

He didn't know much about other countries, but the gate in front of him looked vaguely like something he remembered seeing in a history book...or some sort of travel guide. It took about 2 minutes to sink in before his jaw dropped. "WHERE AM I?!" He shouted. After a few minutes of panic, Issac managed to calm himself down, and get a few rational thoughts back. First thing he saw that wasn't the building he had been stuck in was a lake past the trees, so he started off, hoping to get there before something crazy happened.

It was a good hour or so before Issac found the lake's edge, and even longer before he found a place that was shady and grassy enough to sit and be able to think for longer than a second before mud or dirt stuck to his pants. Considering there probably wouldn't be another pair of pants for him to wear anywhere nearby, he though he might as well take care of these, and keep them as clean as possible. 'I suppose this will be the best place I'll find.' He thought, putting his hand down and running it though the grass lightly before sitting down with a light thump, leaning his back against the tree and looking out over the lake.

It wasn't long before his face went blank, his thoughts giving him a thousand-yard stare. Thoughts bounced around his head, going from one side of his brain to another, then back again, like two kids playing catch with boomerangs. The sun reached its highest point before any progress had been made to figuring out what was going on, but he had gone from the first to the last stage of grief before it past high noon. 'Well, nothing more I can do here...Thinking got me no where...and my legs are falling asleep again. I suppose I should stand up and try and find a town or something.'

With that Issac stood, using the tree as balance while his legs tingled from falling asleep. Once they didn't feel like tingly blocks of wood, he pushed off the tree to start him moving and started off, following the lake's edge. Wandering the forest with no idea where he was and only a wrench to defend himself seemed like a bad idea, and while he had no way to know the shore was safer, it was a bit more open, giving him a better chance to see if something was coming to try and murder or eat him, or worse, both.

It was about half an hour before the trees broke and he was finally at a clear part of the shore. "Finally." He sighed and started to step out of the small lake shoreline he had been following, before jumping back, something appearing in front of him and flashing him, causing spots in his eyes. "AH!" He screamed as another laughed and chattered some sort of cry. "Ayayayayayayayaya!"

Without a tree to catch himself on, Issac fell backwards. He landed with a hard thump, and backed up as he tried to regain his sight. He pulled the wrench from his belt and held it ready to swing, hoping that the threat of it would keep what ever was in front of him at bay. "Oh...I'm sorry." A voice came from somewhere in front of him. He felt a hand grab his wrench and pull him up, back onto his feet as his eyes started to clear. "What the hell was that?" Issac said blinking rapidly, rubbing his eyes to try and clear them a little faster. When he did, he had to blink again as to what was in front of him.

Two women, one with black hair and some sort of red hat, the other with brown hair and nothing in or on her hair. Both of them looked no older than himself, but something about them seemed to say messing with either of them would be a bad idea. The brunette looked shy, but she still looked like he would get his ass kicked if he tried anything, but the oddest part about them was their backs, As both of them had large black wings, like those of a raven behind them. It took Issac a few moments to realize he was staring at the wings and he shook his head.

"Well, I know exactly what you are!" The black-haired girl said, jumping a little and seeming very excitable. "With just your reactions, I can tell you are a Gappy Stu!" She smiled and jumped. "I mean, I've never seen you before, and I've seen everyone. You stared at our wings like you've never seen tengu before, and your clothing says it right out! It's like you scream 'Gappy Stu!'" She laughed and got a few more pictures. "Sotellmeyournameagedateofbir thshoesizeandwhatyouwoulddot owinadatewiththelovelySyrena here!" Her mouth moved faster than anything he had ever heard before.

"Wait, what was that about shoe size and a date?" Issac blinked trying to understand what she was saying. "So, tell me your name, age, date of birth, shoe size, and what you would do to win a date with the lovely Syrena here." She repeated, slower this time. At this point, Her companion, the brunette seemed to be beet red, embarrassed by the woman she was with. "Aya!" She yelled out, putting her hands over her face and turning away.

"Explain how any of this makes sense!" He snapped and looked to the hyper one. He grabbed her arm and made sure to hold her down to earth as he spoke to her. "Forward aren't you?" She laughed and looked to him. "Ok, tell me where the closest sign of civilization is, where the hell I am in relation to it, what the hell a Gappy Stu is, and lastly, why are you acting like a member of the paparazzi?" He sighed, asking her these questions quickly. "Let me go, and I'll tell you what I can." She replied happily.

Issac let her go and watched her rub her arm. "You have some rough hands. Nice grip too." She smiled, as if that was a good quality to her. "Now, in order, The closest sign would be that mansion across the lake, The Scarlet Devil Mansion." She pointed off to the side, straight towards a mansion that indeed stood there. 'How did I miss that?!' He yelled in his head before looking back to her. "In relation, across a lake and I run Gensokyo's famous newspaper BunBunMaru!" She said boastfully, ignoring one question.

Issac's palm hit the top of his face in a gesture akin to the saying 'good grief.' "I meant something that didn't involve swimming, or trying to fly myself over there." He said, glaring at their wings with envy, the strangeness not sinking in at the moment. "OH! That would be the human village, it's about 5 minutes flight that way." She said pointing before remembering something. "Oh... right, you don't have wings...um... we could fly you, but you look rather heavy...Or you could walk but it would be an hour or so before you got there...hm...and there are Youkai in there..." She said and rubbed her chin.

"Looks like you have your first assignment Syrena! Interview the Gappy and walk him to the human village!" Aya said and smiled, giving her a small brush and note pad, then jumping up, taking off. "Ayayayayaya!" She cackled leaving the two alone on the ground, both dumbfounded by what happened.


	4. Calm before the storm

The first bit of the walk passed in silence, nothing bigger than a mouse crossing the two's path while they walked towards the human village. A quick test run had shown that Issac was much too heavy to carry while flying, and from what Syrena said, he might have been too heavy even if she had been working together with Aya. "I don't know what she was thinking." Syrena sighed, looking off to the side and putting the brush under her arm, making sure to not touch her outfit with it.

"Hm?" Issac mumbled lightly from where he was walking, trying to keep his feet from getting caught in the roots of trees they passed. "You say something...uh...Syrena wasn't it?" He asked, having been more distracted by the crazy bird girl when her name was said. He hoped he hadn't insulted her or something by getting it wrong, if he had gotten it wrong.

"O-Oh, yeah, it is." She said, a smile as she looked to him. " People don't usually remember it, with the welcome Aya gave you, I had thought you either forgot it or missed it. What is your name?" She asked, taking the brush and putting it to the paper to start writing what he said.

"Issac Reily, and I guess your next question is if I'm human." He said and shrugged as she nodded. "I guess, I mean, until today I thought it was just humans." He said, not quite sure how to answer that. It was like he was taken from home and put into a new country, trying to figure out how to do things without offending anyone. Thankfully they were able to speak the same language.

"So, you really are from the outside world?" Syrena stopped writing and looked to him. She seemed genuinely interested in that. As soon as she noticed she stopped writing though, she started again, looking a little embarrassed.

"Well, yeah. At least, that is what I was told when I woke up here. I still don't get what you mean by 'outside world.' " Issac said with sarcastic air quotes. " But apparently I'm from there. Heh, I never thought something like this could exist without anyone noticing." He chuckled, remembering stories of alternate universes and fairy tale worlds from when he was a child.

"Yeah, That's because of Yukari." Syrena nodded and wrote a few more things down. "She holds up the border between your world and Gensokyo. I think it's more for our safety than yours though, considering how much the outside world seemed to have changed. I mean, just yesterday I saw one of the Kappas running around with some sort of metal box with a button on it. She faced a small green square and pressed the button, and the green thing exploded!" She said, throwing her arms out and accidentally putting a line of ink on Issac's cheek. "Oh! I'm sorry." Syrena said, covering her mouth with her hands again.

" Nah, It's cool. I'll wash it off later. But what you described to me sounds like plastic explosives. In the outside world, I'm pretty sure we call it C4 or something like that." He said, faintly remembering seeing something on that when he was watching Tv. Something about burning came to his mind before the thoughts faded to nothing. "At least I think that was what it was...could be something else." He shrugged.

"Wait... You said they have that in your world? That mean... I could be right!" She jumped in excitement. "So, if those are from your world, what about square boxes that run on electricity and show you pictures or things that happened a while ago and were recorded, are those from your world too?"

"You mean Tv's? Yeah, those are in the outside too. Honestly I think most anything you have in here was or is in the outside world too." Issac said, finding the current questioning kinda odd, but if it would help him get anywhere, he would answer everything he could.

"I KNEW IT! The kappa doesn't invent these things! They just take them from the outside world!" She yelled, startling a few birds into flight. "I always thought that is was odd they could promise something and get it out to the people so fast!" She said standing tall and proud before looking down to Issac. "I can see the human village right past there, I have to go find Aya and get this story to the press before she starts printing the next batch! Thank you for the scoop!"

With that, she took off, flying off towards the village and out of sight as Issac walked out of the trees, seeing a village not far in front of him. 'I wonder if all tengu are as excitable as those two...' He thought with a sigh before walking farther out of the trees and slowly entering the human village.

As soon as he entered, Issac felt a little more calm. Something about being surrounded by people from his own race was a bit calming. Considering what he had been exposed to since getting to this land, it could just be the fact that he felt he could take on any challenge here. It made him smile as he put his hands in his pockets, then started walking down the main street of the village. A few people were gathered around a person preaching something, but Issac paid no mind to that group. He wasn't a religious person, and he didn't want to think he would be around long enough to become one.

Slowly walking around the village, Issac took in the sights. The place looked like someone had taken modern and feudal Japan and put them together into one town, then let it grow from there. It was rather interesting to see how well the modern touches could mix with the feudal design. He would have to suggest something like this if he ever met someone designing expensive homes. 'That would be pretty cool.' He smirked and thought as he passed by a rather interesting looking home, his eyes following it as he walked by.

The walls were simple, worked wood crafted into houses and stores. The modernness came from the base, a concrete slab on the bottom, and the machine worked wood giving the houses a sleek, Modern touch. With the small bits of technology all around the different houses, he couldn't tell whether he had gone back in time, or if he had simply walked into a mock-feudal village.

"Gah!" Issac grunted, taking a step back as someone ran into him, barely keeping on his feet as the other person fell onto their ass. When Issac looked down, he saw it was one of the two girls he had seen before, the black hair girl who looked like she wanted to kill him. "Oh, it's you..." He said, his voice somewhere between anger and fear.

With a grunt, Reimu stood, staring up to the man in front of her. "What are you doing here?" She said and brushed off her dress. "Why aren't you back at the shrine? It's safer for a gappy like you to stay where we can watch you and not go wandering off, or did you suddenly discover some sort of power that let you walk away and defeat anyone in your path?" She said, the tone of her voice more than enough to cause someone to shake in their boots, if they weren't as angry as Issac was.

"Excuse me, I'm not the one who dragged a random person here from their own home! And what did you expect me to do, sit in the building I woke up in until the women who were arguing come back to yell at me instead of each other. Yeah, no." He said and stood tall, his fear of the girl taking a back seat to the anger he had from being yelled at when this wasn't his fault.

"This is the problem with you gappy's! You think you know what's going on when you have no idea!" She threw her hands up in anger. "I bet you have already found out you have some ungodly power and are planning to use it to take over the world!" She snarled.

"I don't have any power, and I don't think I would need any to kick your ass!" Issac yelled, pulling the wrench from his belt. Reimu simply looked at him. No one who had any power over danmaku would simply brandish a tool or weapon like he was. She was about to speak when a black seam opened out of the air, a yellow-haired woman stepping out, the other of the two he met before.

"Dear, please put away that wrench." She said, putting her hand on it and lowering it gently. "This is not the time, nor the place for a battle to occur." She said softly, her voice taking a motherly tone that made Issac a little homesick. "And Reimu is not an opponent you wish to fight. Take an hour to walk around and calm yourself, then I will meet you at the front of the city, near the forest." She said before taking her hand from the wrench and walking away, Reimu turning to follow her.

"That was very unlike you Reimu." Yukari said, her parasol appearing from a gap into her hand. "You have handled yourself much better with many worse." She said, pausing to look at an apple.

"I know, something about being near him... angers me. I don't quite feel like myself...but, it feels like there are two sets of emotions fighting each other, and the only result is anger. Do you think it could have anything to do with what we have discovered?"

Yukari sighed, and looked to her. "I am afraid so. Something is weakening the barrier between dimensions, and that boy...Issac I believe, may just be an unhappy side effect of it, but I do not think he is the one behind it." She said.


	5. The Enemy of my Enemy

Issac growled, the rage he was feeling to the black haired girl slowly starting to subside as he turned and started to walk away. He decided to follow the blond woman's instructions, and cool himself down. Reaching into his pocket, he found a few coins in them, and a slip of paper. He pulled out the paper and looked to it, smirking. 'Please excuse Reimu, she is not feeling so well. Enjoy some lunch and I will see you in about an hour. Signed Yukari.' He read it inside his head, then pulled out a coin.

'So that was Yukari. Maybe she can send me home...' He sighed and walked back to the main street, glancing over the man preaching. His crowd had become much larger than before, but still Issac paid no mind to it. He walked into the small bar like diner that he had walked past before, and sat down inside, ordering some dumplings to help him clear his head. The waiter nodded and walked away, leaving him alone with a glass of water.

Before the waiter came back, another man sat down across from Issac's table. "Hm... What's a guy like you going in a place like this?" He asked, looking slightly uninterested in where he sat. "Not in the mood for chit chat, just her to think, sorry." Issac said, taking a drink. "Yeah, I saw that fight, not too pretty. Reimu is not one you want to get in to a fight with." The man said, making Issac look up from the glass.

"You have my attention. Start talking." Issac said. "Good! First thing's first, I'm Graham Shepard. It's nice to meet you." He said and put out a hand, letting Issac shake it. "Issac." He replied and put his hands back on the water glass. "Well, Issac, As you can tell by my shirt and pants, I'm not a local here, like you. I was sitting at home one day, and found myself here when I went to my room." He shrugged. "And I guess it was similar for you?"

Issac was hesitant to answer him, but he said something after wards. "Yeah, Pretty much the same for me." He replied finally and looked to the man with blond hair in front of him. Green eyes looked back to him, a perfect smile below them. Something about this man made Issac feel sick. Despite the looks, Issac could just feel this man was an evil man, one covered in the slime of his crimes.

"Well, It's good to meet someone who is in the same boat as me." He said gleefully. " I think we should work together here. You and me, birds of a feather and such." He nodded. "Think about what the two of us, both from the outside world with outside knowledge, we could do anything! We could make this world such a better place, we could make everyone's lives so much easier! I already have the support of some of the people in this town, and I'm going to go try and convince some of the Tengu next. Come with me, and we can work to make this place paradise." He exclaimed.

Issac pondered this for a moment, then shook his head no. As tempting of an offer it was, Issac didn't plan to stay anywhere long enough to make any lasting impressions. "Sorry man, I don't plan to stay that long. I want to get home before I get fired for not showing up to work." Graham seemed to understand, nodding his head and standing up. "Well, it's your choice. I wish you get home swiftly and safely my friend." He said, grabbing a brown stick looking object and walking off, just as the waiter brought Issac his food.

Issac ate in silence, wondering what it meant that he wasn't the only one from the outside world here. He couldn't get the man's offer out of his head, like an insistent buzzing that wouldn't leave. 'What if I do get stuck here...Maybe I will take him up on that offer.' He thought, finishing his food, leaving the money for it on the table and standing, starting out of the diner before almost running into someone. "Where are you off to in such a hurry dear?"

"Oh...You're Yukari right?" Issac said, looking to the woman he had been seeing over and over again since he arrived. "Yes dear, that is my name, I assume Aya and her new apprentice were the ones who told you?" She said, walking off to the side so to not obstruct traffic into the diner. Issac followed and nodded, giving her all she needed to know. " I thought as much. Well, if you have calmed down enough to speak with Reimu calmly, than I suppo-" she was about to finish when she was cut off by someone nearly barreling into them from the sky. Aya nearly crashed into the diner as she stopped, then turned to them. "Yukari! We need Reimu and Marisa! Someone is attacking the Tengu with an army of humans and youkai!" She panted.


	6. Swallow your pride

_**Ch 6: Swallow your pride.**_

"Woah woah, wait what?" Issac jumped back a little, her words taking a few moments to register in his head. "What do you mean?!" He said grabbing her arms. A single thought ran though his head, a thought of bloody feathers, but his mind wouldn't connect it to anything he knew.

"I-I had just gotten back, and I was about to start printing out tomorrow's papers when a friend of mine came and told me to go check outside. I went over and..." She shuttered. "There were hundreds of them, Human, Youkai, I think I even saw a few Tengu... They attacked us without warning. The worst part was...people from inside the city were attacking each other. It was like a civil war." She said and looked a little guilty. She had gotten away, but she had left all those people behind to face the army.

"They... They were lead by a human...A gappy, like you!" Aya pulled away from him and stood next to Yukari. "I'm afraid Issac here is not one of the ones behind this. I fear he is an unfortunate side effect to whoever is leading this army's plan." Yukari said and put her parasol down, resting both her hands on it like it was a cane. "This is bad news. I'm afraid we will not be able to have you apologize to Reimu. I will take you to the shrine Issac, and you will wait there for this to blow over." She said, a black line opening.

Then it hit Issac like a ton of bricks. Another outsider leading an army. There was only one other outsider he had seen since entering this world. His mind went back to the man who had sat across from him. He had seen him before, standing above a crowd. He was the one preaching. All the people listening to him, they were human, and as far as he could guess Youkai. He gathered an army in hours by preaching to them, by making them believe he was the man to follow.

Issac blinked. 'What if he had tried that on me? Maybe...That's what I felt. That feeling of slimy evil... maybe that's why I felt so odd while talking to him...' He thought, the feeling coming back to him before being replaced with guilt. 'I could have stopped this...I knew this guy was bad news...and I let him go.' Issac felt the color drain from his face. "This is my fault."

"Issac, follow us, we must get to the Hakurei shrine, and this is the fastest way." Yukari commanded, grabbing his arm without warning and dragging him into a world of nightmares. The first thing he saw, all around him where thousands upon thousands of eyes, staring at him and the other two as they passed. This place, unnerved Issac beyond anything he had ever seen. The other two with him were perfectly fine, like this was a normal everyday thing for them.

When Issac saw the an opening in front of them, he was overjoyed. It had only been a moment or two, and this place had already pushed his mind to a very, very dark place. He stepped out of the gap and looked around, seeing the building that he had woken up in around them. That didn't help him, but between the thoughts of guilt, and the unnerving dimension he had just gone though, he wasn't about to comment on being back there.

It wasn't long before the single girl in the shrine noticed them. "What are you doing back here?" She said standing up, putting her cup of tea down. "Reimu, there is an incident. Now is not the time to be fighting with someone who has nothing to do with this." Yukari said. "Really? Because I think kicking a gappy's ass is always a good idea." She stood tall, watching as Aya stood between them.

"Reimu, Yukari is right, The Tengu village is under attack by an actually gappy. We need you and Marisa to help us stop the army." Aya said, looking a little worried about her home, and her friends. "Aya...Alright, Let me get the ying yang orbs, and Yukari to get Marisa, then we'll take care of this." She said, putting a hand on Aya's shoulder, then walking off to the other room.

"Reimu." Issac called, following Reimu out of the room. "I..I know you don't like me, but I need to come with you. I..I have to help out some how." Issac said, trying to keep from sounding like he was begging. "Why should I let a gappy like you come with us? All you want is the glory of being the one to solve this, and from what I saw in the village, you don't even know how to use Danmaku."

"I-I know, but I need to go... this... This is all my fault..." He whispered, causing Reimu to turn and glare at him. The orbs around her were spinning faster than buzzsaws. "How. Did. You. Cause. This!?" She yelled, rushing forward and grabbing his shirt.

"The...The gappy. He came to me, tried to get me to work with him...I didn't realize it, but he was... using something on me. He was trying to convince me with some sort of magic...or something." Issac said, looking down like He had just admitted to murder. "That...Is something the Gappy's seem to be able to do. They have some sort of power here...It's like wearing their heart on their sleeves, and some people can see it, the ones who can't... it seems like they fall under some sort of spell. That could be how this man got an army so quickly without anyone noticing it." Reimu sighed

"I could have stopped him, You have to let me co-" Issac stopped as a hand went across his face, leaving a bright red imprint of a hand over the black mark. "Shut up. I know I haven't given you a fair chance, and if what you said is true, you have nothing to do with this. I know in your world there is crime. Is it your fault if you meet a thief and he steals from someone? No, so stop blaming yourself. You didn't know, and there was nothing you could have done if you had known." She sighed and looked to him.

"Once Yukari is back, I'll get her to take you to the Kappa. Maybe they have something that could make it so you survive long enough to be of use." She said and looked to him, a worried smile on her face, trying to look confident for someone's sake, perhaps her own.


	7. Lock and Load

_**Ch 7: Lock and Load**_

Very little was said after that, barely a word until Yukari returned. As soon as she did, Reimu asked her to take Issac to the Kappa village, to get Nitori to equip him to survive the fight that was going to happen. She nodded, not going to question the shrine maiden before the incident. Another trip through the nightmare dimension, and Issac was standing in a field, bright and sunny as Issac was told the hills of California were.

"This Is the outskirts of the Kappa village. I'm sure we'll find Nitori out here somewhere." Yukari said, looking around then down towards a large river running through the grassy hills. Sitting down by the shore was a single girl, blue haired and wearing a green hat. Issac found it odd enough for a second glance before Yukari started walking towards her without a second thought. "Is that who we are looking for?" He asked.

"Nitori," The woman said, her hands on the parasol. "Reimu has sent me to gather your help. An incident is taking place, and we need to prepare Issac here with some equipment that will allow him to survive and fight back, as he has no grasp on Danmaku." She said as the girl sitting by the river's edge put her hands on her lap and looked up.

"Well, sounds like a challenge. I'll take the job. " She took the small block off plastic of her lap and put it into one of the many pockets of the backpack she sat next to. "Walk with me, I'll get a mental list together while we get to my place."

The walk was unsurprisingly quiet, the small kappa girl listing off items, shaking her head lightly with each one. Yukari opened a portal, claiming she could hear her familiar calling to her, and left Issac alone with Nitori. After a few more steps, The kappa stopped and sniffed the air. "Do I smell...oil?" She asked quizzically.

"It took a moment or the question to register in his head before Issac answered her. "Huh? Oh! Y-yeah. I got tossed here right after work, so I didn't have time to change." Issac sighed, "I must have gotten something on my shirt while I was changing the oil from that truck." He muttered, earning a smile from Nitori as they started walking again. "Work with your hands I assume? I can respect that." She nodded and spied the small warehouse like building that served as a lab for her.

"Here we are!" She said and opened the sliding metal door, then pulled it close when he was inside. "I have a few treats for you, so wait here." She promised and put her pack down, running off to the back of the warehouse. She returned after a few minutes, her arms full of different things, ranging from grenades, to blocks of C4, to some black disks, to a broom. That last one confused Issac until she set it down on the ground, where it started to float.

"Alright! Crash course here. C4, semtex, witch's broom, and these black disks are in case something bad happens and someone gets too close to you." She started explaining. "I can see you have a wrench, and while that won't work on Youkai, it may on humans and fairies." Nitori spoke quickly, showing off what each of the things she had brought could do. Issac couldn't get a word in, but he didn't mind much.

"All you do is stick and push as far away from them as you can." Nitori said, putting a black disk on the small dummy, one he would note looked a lot like Aya, wings and all. Nitori ran back to the small standing area where Issac was, then smiled. Five seconds after she placed it, The black disk flashed once, then made a blinding light before Issac covered his face with his arm. When he looked back, the dummy was a pile of wood wings, and feathers. "That will teach her to come here with that 'magic fingers' bullshit."

Issac wasn't paying attention, his mind going back to an image he had thought of earlier. 'Bloody feathers...why am I thinking...Oh GOD! Syrena! She flying into a trap!' Issac jumped, grabbing the things and shoving them in a back pack and in his pockets. He jumped on the broom, putting his feet on it like it was a hover board. "Sorry Nitori! I'll have to figure it out on my own!" He yelled to her as he started speeding off, leaving her in the dust.

Nitori blinked, putting the pin back in the grenade she had pulled it from and putting it on the dummy she had just set up, this one of Yukari. "Issac! Aw damn..." She called at first before looking to the dummy, pulling the pin from the grenade before walking away. How would she explain this one to Yukari?


	8. A Decisive Battle

_**Ch 8: A decisive battle.**_

The air rushing past Issac's face felt like a tornado blowing all around him, but the feeling was too good to ignore. 'So this is what flying feels like.' He thought and pulled the bag from his back. He hadn't actually checked what he shoved into it. Now was the only chance he was going to get, and Issac was going to be taking it. 'Let's see what I have."

The tally was not too encouraging. 5 grenades, 24 disks, 5 1x1 blocks of C4, and a pair off dirty goggles he must have swiped off the table by accident. Fumbling a little, Issac wipped them off on his shirt and put the goggles on, then started to speed up. He had to get to the Tengu village before too long. Syrena had already gotten into a skirmish, but if Issac was lucky, he would get there before it was too late.

Sadly, fate had a different plan. As he came into sight of the village, he stopped. 'What was...that? Damn!" Issac thought as he saw something, then dropped off the broom, grabbing it before flipping back onto the top of it. "What the hell was that?!" Issac yelled, barely having regained his footing on the broom. 'That looked like someone was shooting me with rainbows!' Issac said in his head, realizing how crazy that sounded.

"There! A non-beliver! Let's convert him as Graham told us too!" A Tengu yelled out, her eyes glazed over as she spoke. It was only a second or two before 3 more tengu and 3 humans appeared by the first, all looking crazy and ready to attack.

"Hey, I don't want any-" Issac began, ducking under another shot. "Fine, if you won't listen to reason... let's try this!" Issac growled, pulling the pin from a grenade, tossing it in the midst of the group. The explosive was a little off, exploding below the people instead of in the middle of them. It didn't matter much, as soon as the people were hit by the grenade, they vanished, as if engulfed in the explosion. Issac would have regarded that as strange, if a stinging pain hadn't shot though his arm.

"GAH!" He grunted, pulling a grenade from the pack looking around. He had no idea what hit him, but it hurt like hell. Grenade still in his hand, he put a finger over the wound now on his arm. It was just below his sleeve, and with a single touch, he could tell he was bleeding. "Damn...That stings," Issac inhaled sharply before putting the explosive back in the pack.

'Time to move. If someone finds me alone here, I don't think I'll have the luxury of being able to explain.' He thought, setting off again, ripping his sleeve to make a makeshift wrap for the wound. 'I hope I'll be able to get some actual medical attention for that soon.' He sighed, kicking the broom into high gear.

Unfortunately for Issac, it wasn't long before he ran into another group of humans, and these were not only armed, but were waiting for someone like him to come and try to get past them. "STOP THE HERETIC!" One yelled, gathering a few confused looks from the others. "The one on the broom!" The first yelled before everyone nodded in understanding, and started firing at him.

Issac dropped to prone on the broom, trying to avoid a volley of rainbow-colored shots, one barely grazing the side of his leg as he dropped. The pain was instant, and familiar, as the shot-bullet-thing tore though the fabric of his jeans and left a rather shallow wound. 'Ok, getting hit by those things is bad. Good to know.' Issac thought, grabbing a grenade and throwing it at the group.

He got a pretty good shot considering the volley of shots coming at him, the grenade hitting one of the humans in the face, bouncing off and exploding, engulfing three in the explosion. Issac would have to feel bad about killing his own kind later, as these shots were not going to let up enough for him to feel anything beside adrenaline.

Another grenade, and only one was left. Issac rushed forward, a disk in his hand. "Where is Graham?" He yelled, grabbing the last one by the collar. "The master will rule! We will die for him tonight to ensure people will have a brighter future!" The cultist like servant yelled. He managed to get a shot off, this one tearing across Issac's side. Issac winced, then stuck the disk to the man, throwing him down towards the ground before it exploded.

Issac shed a few tears as he landed under a tree that had fallen. He had just... killed almost 20 people. Issac felt sick to his stomach. He was a murderer. It was true they attacked him first, but he still took their lives without remorse. "What... what kind of monster am I?" He said aloud before he jumped, a twig snapping behind him. His hand was on another one of Nitori's black disks.

"The fact you're asking that means you aren't that bad of a monster." A woman said, ducking under the low branches of the leaning tree. "Reimu is going to be glad your aren't dead yet." She said with a smile, pulling her witch's hat off and wiping her head with her arm, then replacing her hat.

Issac relaxed a little when she spoke of Reimu, but still held the explosive in his hand. "Who exactly are you? How do you know Reimu?" He asked, his stance starting to falter as he felt the weariness of combat starting to hit him. "Woah woah. Sit down, you are in no shape to be standing." The girl said, helping him to the ground before he fell over.

"I'm Marisa Kirisame, and Reimu is a good friend of mine. Now relax, Reimu is on her way, and we can think of a plan when she gets here." Marisa said, taking his bag and looking through it. "So, you stopped by Nitori's workshop before rushing out here huh?" She chuckled, "Not a bad idea, thought I supposed that means you have no grasp on Danmaku..." She mumbled the last part.

"Lot of good that did me...All I've been able to do is get myself shot three times and kill nearly twenty people." Issac groaned, moving his hand to his side. The wound was shallow, and had already stopped bleeding, but it still stung like a wasp. "Killed? You really haven't encountered Danmaku before...You can't kill people through the spell card rules. All you can do is take a live away."

Issac's face screamed a flat 'WHAT?' "Lives? What is this some kind of game?" He said trying to sit up and falling back in pain. "Some call Danmaku a game, but it's easier to resolve conflicts and incidents when no one really dies, I'll explain it all when Reimu gets here. For now, take a nap, I'll keep watch." Marisa said with a wink before Issac's eyes shut, and he fell into the comfortable darkness of sleep.

"Reimu needs to see this. A person physically harmed by Danmaku." Marisa shook her head, This was something completely new, and very, very bad.


	9. Brilliant Insanity

**_Ch 9: Brilliant Insanity._**

"-found him taking cover here." Voices fade in and out of Issac's mind, which stood drifting at the edge of consciousness. "Physically hurt by Danmaku? That shouldn't be-" Another voice, familiar to him, but still off in the distance. "Hey Issac," This voice was much closer. "It's time to wake up."

Issac felt his eyes slowly open, the twilight outside giving him a little light to see the fallen tree and rubble with. "What...How long was I out?" He groaned, sitting up as Marisa handed him a bit of water in a canteen. Issac took it, drinking lightly,then looking up to Marisa and Reimu, who had just entered their little shelter.

"Good to see you've survived long enough for us to find you." Reimu sighed and sat down on the ground. "I was about to give up on you when Marisa found me." She turned to Marisa, and watched as she sat down on her own floating broom. "So, this is that 'Issac' I've been hearing about. It's been a few hours, Ze." Marisa blinked, wondering why she had done that. "Is that one of the things you were talking about Reimu?" She asked.

"It is. As the barriers weaken, we may feel different side of us come out more. Yukari is doing her best to hold the borders, but she can't hold them forever. We have to find Graham before they fall, or he'll be nearly unstoppable." Reimu said, standing up, helping Issac up.

"Mind explaining what that was about?" Issac gripped his side as he got up. "In simple terms, Something about you and that gappy is breaking down the walls between the dimensions. Different versions of everyone from different multiverses are coming together, and it's leading to some great power increases." Reimu said, readying her wand and Ying-yang orbs. "And some bad mood swings." Marisa added.

"You ok to keep going? If what Aya told me is true, Graham is near the top of the mountain with a someone who rushed in to the city earlier." Ruimu said, looking to Marisa, who nodded and sat on her broomstick. She nodded back then turned to Issac. " Have you seen Syrena around here?" He asked, limping over to the broomstick Nitori had given him.

"Aya's apprentice? No, we haven't seen hide nor hair of her." Marisa and Reimu both shook their head as they spoke. "If Graham is holding someone hostage, and Syrena is missing, than we should get to the top of the mountain as soon as possible." Marisa pointed to the top of Youkai mountain, past the village.

"Shouldn't we go find Syrena first?" Reimu asked, starting to glide half an inch off the ground, giving Issac a moment to steel himself. "If Graham is a gappy like we think he is, than what better way to prove he is better than all of us than take the antagonist's love interest and make her his own?" Marisa said, pointing to Issac, who blushed madly.

Ok, he might have thought about asking Syrena on a date if he stayed, but that had nothing to do with this! What did she think this was, some sort of bad fan fiction?! "To the top of the mountain than." Reimu agreed as Marisa sped off. "What?" Issac was dumb struck.

"Marisa is a thief, a mad witch, and borderline insane, but at times like this, she's usually right. The one time she was wrong, we found out she was still technically right. It may seem crazy to follow her, but I trust her enough to give it a shot." With that Reimu sped off, needing nothing more than the orbs to keep her in the air.

` Issac would have argued her logic, but he had to rush just to keep from losing her. 'Too late to turn back now.' Issac thought with a sigh as they entered the village.


	10. SSDD

_**Ch 10: S.S.D.D.**_

The moment they entered the Tengu village, the outlook was dark, and the mood darker. Buildings had fallen, broken and blasted to rubble. This was the power of Danmaku. The power to break buildings, burn trees to cinders, yet leave human, youkai, and everything between alive and well. It was... hard for Issac to know how he felt about this.

Most of the village was in ruins as they flew by. "The destruction..." Issac said, having gone to sitting on the broom to give his feet a rest from standing. "What's up newbie?" Marisa said as she pulled back a little noticing he was looking down.

"Just... Taking in the scenery." He said, casting a hand out, gesturing towards the once colorful and intact buildings. "Yeah. Danmaku isn't a perfect system...but we've found that it's much safer than anything else. People don't often die in incidents because of the spell cards. Losing a life..." Marisa paused, "I asked an old friend of mine what dying was like, once."

Issac lifted his head from looking to the ground at that. "Really?" He said, his voice sounding a bit more surprised than he really was. "Yeah, and from what she would tell me before sending me away," She took along pause, " It is not a thing I am eager to experience." She said, looking down, remembering her old friend.

Issac let the topic drop, remembering the look from when his parents had to go through his grandparents dying. There was nothing to say, and the only cure for that look is thought, deep often very saddening thought. With a small nod, he moved up towards Reimu, watching as she effortlessly scanned the destruction for something or other.

"You alright Issac?" She asked, glancing up to him, then back to her search. "Yeah, just thinking I suppose." Reimu shifted, making herself a little more vertical. "About?" She asked as she shifted, looking as if she was about to start grinding her teeth. Being that close to Issac was drawing her anger out, as it had done before.

"Just...has anyone actually died from this...'Danmaku' stuff?" He asked, putting air quotes around the word. Reimu sighed and closed her eyes for a moment. "I could tell you, but you might not like the answer. Heads up, we got company." Reimu pointed to just behind Marisa, where 3 fairies were tailing them. "Wonderful, Marisa, heads up, we have three bogies on our tails!" Issac shouted. He chuckled a little, then reached into his bag. He had always wanted to say that.

The dog fight started from there, the three of them pulling together, before going off into different directions as more fairies showed up. Reimu broke off to the left, Marisa to the right, leaving Issac to go down the main street of the Tengu village. "Keep up if you can!" Issac yelled out and jumped up onto his feet, surfing on the broom once again, explosives in his hand. He had two grenades, and quite a few of the black disks. Issac wouldn't touch the C4 for now, not after what he heard about it.

Tossing one grenade behind him, Issac turned the broom so he was angled more to the sky, letting fairies follow him into the sky, the tail end of the swarm that had gathered being engulfed in the blast. "Got you, you little – Woah!" Issac yelled as he was nearly hit by a giant wave of Danmaku. The remaining fairies were not too happy with his explosives.

That set off the chase about 20 fairies right behind him as he weaved in and out of broken buildings, nearly crashing when it came to making a sharp turn or stopping on a dime to avoid hitting something. The shots behind him did not help, as they seemed to always be going faster than him. He had to watch his front and back, and the one time he stopped watching his front for a moment, He felt himself enter free fall, lurching forward and down towards the ground.

A danmaku shot had hit the broom, shattering it right out from under Issac's feet, leading him to land on the ground, tumbling end over end as his body rid itself of momentum. It wasn't long before he slammed into a small rubble wall, yelping out in pain as he lost the last of his momentum. It took him a little bit to stand, and by that time, the fairies were all around him.

"Well...Damn it." Issac cursed and took a step back, his back to the wall. "I'm sorry Syrena..." he whispered to himself looking over the things that would be his killers. Freaking fairies would kill him, either that or that thing approaching at high speeds? Issac blinked, than smiled. He reached into his bag, then threw something into the air as someone grabbed his outstretched arm.

The fairies never stood a chance against the block of C4 Issac detonated in the middle of them after Marisa saved him. "Nice save Marisa." Issac said, putting the detonator in his pack again. "You owe me. Let's go, we need to meet up with Reimu again. She should be finished with that youkai now." She smiled as Issac climbed up onto the broom.

The trip was short, and silent. The sounds of a dead city was their music, and the wail of wind, their conversation. Marisa let her own feet touch the ground before jumping off the broom and letting Issac off. Reimu was looking up to the top of the mountain they stood in front of, watching it as she waited for the other two.

"I don't like this they have been too quiet up there..." She said before turning back to them, then jerking forward. A high speed danmaku shot from the top of the mountain hit her square in the back. "REIMU!" Issac yelled, rushing forward and trying to catch her, but her body had vanished before she hit the ground. All he ended up grabbing were two red squares.

"What...What the hell just happened?! What are these, Where is Reimu!?" Issac panicked. He stood up turning back to Marisa before getting a hand across his face. "It's alright. We have to move!" She said grabbing the broom and giving it to him, then grabbing the ying yang orbs, than started to float.

"What just-" Issac started before Marissa snapped. "She took a bullet for you! That one was aimed for your heart and Reimu took it in the back!" She was completely calm, as she knew it was only another life lost, but that doesn't mean they would be safe here. "Come on, she'll be back in a few minutes!" She yelled and took off, leaving Issac there for a few moments before he slipped the two red squares into his pockets and took off, following Marisa.

He hoped she was right that Reimu would come back soon. This was going to get difficult, and it was going to get difficult fast.


	11. The dead walk again

Ch 11: The dead walk again.

Issac patted the small box like object on his belt. Marisa was down, Reimu had yet to return and he was all alone going up this mountain. The two orbs following him did little to calm his hyperactive mind, causing him to jump at every little thing. 'Calm down Issac. You may be in danger, but this is not the time to get paranoid.' He closed his eyes for a moment, sighed, then opened them. What he wouldn't have given to have never opened them again...

The mountain was gone, along with the trees, the buildings, the rubble, the fires, even the smoke, all gone and replaced by a dark landscape. The landscape seemed broken stone, nothing but stone after stone after stone, as far as the eye could see. "What the hell..." Issac said, his heart beating in his ears, the steady pulse adding to a distant, empty wind. It was unnerving to say the least, terrifying to say anything else. Taking a moment to calm his heart and breathing, Issac took in the surroundings. He noted that after a few yards in any direction, the landscape was obscured by haze, purple, like the stones below him.

'This... can't be right.' Issac thought and started walking, picking a direction at random. He entered the haze and had to jump back, holding his throat. As soon as he entered that cloud, his body felt...dead. His lungs screamed for air, and his legs failed to support him, causing him to fall to the ground. "What...in...the..." He gasped and started sitting up, slowly getting back onto his feet. One thing was clear, he wasn't going anywhere near that mist again.

Within a few moments, Issac had explored the livable area of the landscape about 3 times. He sat down at the center of the clearing and tried to relax. It was hard to do, as he realized he had nothing more than the cloths on his back. No mini-hakaro, no ying yang orbs, no broom, not even his wrench. That seemed to hit him the hardest. What ever did this to him had taken the one bit of normal, the one bit of familiarity he had.

'I...I guess I'm stuck here.' Issac though and leaned back, holding himself up with his hands. "Syrena, Reimu, Marisa... I'm sorry." He said out loud, then chuckled. He had kind of expected an answer. "For what?" A voice said, making Issac jumping up to his feet. He scanned the clearing and the haze, then he saw it, and with anyone as his witness, Issac wished he hadn't.

Marisa stepped out of the haze, slowly, her left leg limping behind her. Her face was paler than porcelain, and her outfit was messy, as if she had slept in it. Dirt fell off it as she moved closer, forcing Issac to step back. That wasn't the worst. The worst, was her face, which sat without the right side. That's where she had been hit, right in the face by a fairy who blindsided her. Everything from her nose out and up was gone.

"For letting me die? Oh, I shouldn't be the one you apologize to. Reimu is much madder than I am. Here she is now..." Marisa said, looking past him with her one eye, giving him a look at what was left of her head. Issac nearly vomited at that. It only got worse when the second figure walked out of the haze. Once flowing black hair was shriveled and dry, the robes of a shrine maiden covered in blood. The hole where her heart was pulsed with blood, like her heart was still beating.

"Isssssssac..." Reimu hissed, like air escaping. "Whyyyy..." She hissed and held a hand up as the orbs floated up from the ground, both broken and cracked. They seemed to whistle with the winds, asking the same question. "Why... Why did you let us die?' Issac felt his heart beating faster as he saw Marisa pull her mini-hakaro from her dress, then flip it. Issac took a step back, then another, then bumped into something. He jumped forward and turned, falling to his knees as he felt all the air leave his body.

Syrena stood in front of him, her button up shirt pulled apart, the buttons hanging or gone, blood splattered on the front. That was all she wore, and from her porcelain white skin, dripping with blood from a wound in her neck, and the dirt on her body, Issac could guess what happened to her. "Issac..." Her wound bubbled a little when she spoke. "Why did you leave me with him..." Her voice was like gravel grating on concrete. "Why did you let him do this to me?" She asked, and spread her wing. Only one remained, and that one was torn, muscle and bone showing under dead feathers.

Issac had nothing he could say, his voice did not work, his lung stood frozen in time, and his body felt like it was in syrup. "Why Issac?" All three of them asked him, taking a step forward. "Why did you let him kill us?" They all took another step. It wasn't long before they were almost withing arm reach of Issac, the three of them surrounding him. They all looked like monsters, hungry, dead monsters. Issac looked to all of them, his blood running cold. He did the only thing that came to mind. He tackled Reimu and got up, taking off as fast as he could.


	12. United we stand

Ch 12: United, we stand.

Issac didn't stop to look back, he didn't stop to look down at the hands rising from the stones below him. He just started running, and never looked anywhere besides in front of himself. He could swear he kept hearing his name being called, and the haze seemed to open in front of him, guiding his path towards the sound. He couldn't complain about it, even if he didn't feel like he was running for his life.

For what felt like forever, Issac kept running, one leg in front of the other, step after step, until he ran out of stone to run on. Issac barely stopped before his feet went off into a pit, and it took a second for him to regain his balance. Looking down, Issac couldn't help but take a step back. He had heard of the abyss staring back, but he never thought it true, until now. He turned back, and saw he was between a rock and a hard place.

Syrena, Reimu, and Marisa lead the pack, followed closely behind by human, youkai, and fairy, all wounded and pale. Issac recognized every being there, each one was an enemy he had fought. They took a step forward, forcing Issac to take a step back, his heel on the edge of the cliff. From the looks of things, it was a lose-lose situation, either fall to his death, or be tore to shreds by the people he had gotten killed. The choice was not an easy one, as he felt he deserved nothing more than to be torn limb from limb by them...He was too afraid to face what he deserved, and took a dive, jumping back into the abyss as the dead rushed him.

Emptiness, All Issac felt was emptiness. Crushing, suffocating, Emptiness. Issac tried to move his arms, but they stayed in place. He tried to move his legs, but they were stuck as well. 'This is where I die. I can't move...I can't feel anything in my lungs... I die here.' Issac thought and kept his eyes closed. He felt his body slowly being crushed, the darkness around him slowly closing in on him. It felt like hours before Issac started to feel his vision began to tunnel. He couldn't breath anymore. '"This is... the end." Issac released his final breath, before he felt...Air. He could breath again, the pressure slowly lifting off his body.

"W-What is going on?" Issac said, moving a hand to his chest, breathing deeply. " You can't give up now, ze." A voice said, slightly strained. Light started to pour into the darkness, and the first thing Issac was able to see, where four blurry shapes around him. "Get on your feet soldier." Another voice said, this one deeper and male.

"W-What..." Issac was dumbfounded. What was going on?! "I said, get on your feet!" Someone grabbed his hand, pulling him back onto his feet. "This is no time to be napping. Your friends aren't here to watch you get crushed!" The man said again, pulling his hand away as Issac regained his sight. In front of him stood four people, Reimu, Marisa, Syrena, and...He didn't recognize the last one. He looked like a soldier from World War 2, and faintly reminded Issac of someone, but he could not connect a name to the face. "You're the only one who can stop Graham right now." Reimu said, Syrena just nodded sadly, looking like she needed a hero.

"Now, Graham is trying to break down the barriers between the dimensions. That sword of his, It's made of a special metal. Same kind of metal your wrench is made of. You only have one chance, as all he needs is one good shot to kill you." He said and pointed something behind Issac. "Go through there, and you'll be outta here. We can handle this." The man groaned, falling to a knee. Issac hesitated a moment, then bent over, taking whatever weight his friends were holding up, and helping them. "I don't leave a man behind." He said, helping them, then watching as Reimu, Marisa, and Syrena vanished, along with the weight.

"Looks like your parents raised you well." The man said and pointed off. "Go, I'll handle things in here." The man said and watched as Issac ran off. "Seems my daughter raised a fine boy..." The soldier smiled, then walked off, returning to the spirits as Issac approached the gate. A large black gate, looking to have been made of solid metal, then twisted into a gate. In front of it floated a single spirit, a green haired woman who seemed to have a been there for a very long time.

"Welcome, lost one." The woman said, smiling as Issac walked closer to her. "Normally only the dead come here before they cross the river Styx, and only briefly. I'm sure you can guess why." She said and floated around him. "What is a living soul doing here for so long?" The woman asked, running a hand through her hair and letting it fall.

"I don't know why I'm here...I-I just need to get back to the Tengu village...I have to stop Graham." Issac spoke with growing certainty. His voice grew more stable, more confident with every word. "Allow me to pass gate-keeper, I need to finish this fight." He said, looking to her with level eyes. "Too many people have been hurt for me to stop here." For a moment, Issac debated turning back, and thought against it. He had to move on.

"Well it is easy to see why you were brought here. Someone wanted to test you. To make sure you are ready for what you may face ahead. You have faced your fears, you have proven you will not leave one helping you behind. You showed that you will not resort to blows with friends, even if it may be the best option. It is clear, you have passed. Return to your body." The gatekeeper waved her hand, and the world went dark to Issac.

"Let us hope Marisa's faith in you is not unfounded." The gate-keeper said as the soul returned to its body. The area around her faded back to the forest below the Tengu mountain, and she smiled. "She can't say I didn't do anything for her beside teaching her magic." The green haired ghost laughed, leaving to return to her slumber. She may return again, someday.


	13. This is my story

Ch 13: This is my story

Two blank eyes shot open as a soul returned to its body. The blank eyes filled with light before they shut again, and Issac coughed. He would have said that was the weirdest thing that ever happened to him, but a lot of weird things had happened to him recently. He shook the thoughts out of his head and looked around, then jumped up to his feet. The night was nearly over, twilight having passed long ago. Issac took the broom that lay next to him, checking his belt. Wrench, Mini-Hakaro, everything in order and in its place.

With that reassurance he smiled, and jumped onto the broom, starting off at a breakneck pace. He had lost too much time already. 'Syrena, I'm coming." He thought, zooming up the mountain in minutes. When he reached the top of the mountain, Issac realized something was off. He had encountered nothing on the way up after the gate-keeper let him go. Not a single fairy, not a single youkai, not a single thing. When he stopped his ascent, he saw why.

Atop the mountain stood a single man, clapping his hands slowly. Graham smiled, leaning over to casually pick up a long brown paper wrapped package from the ground. "Ah, Issac...I was worried one of my 'enlightened' followers had stuck you down." He smiled and stood, his voice no louder than a normal conversation, forcing Issac land to hear him. "I'm glad you made it up here...Does that mean you reconsidered my offer? I do hope you have, those items would make such good gifts to start our," He paused, searching for the right word. "Friendship." He said, putting a hand on Issac's shoulder.

Issac pushed it off and growled. "I've come here to stop you. You're a madman, and a fool Graham. Gensokyo doesn't need you here, and I'm here to make sure you leave." Issac said flipping the broom up, holding it like a staff. "Is that how you really feel Issac?" Graham looked hurt. "If that's really how you feel, than I guess I have no choice but to," He paused, turning away and walking a few steps before striking at Issac with the brown package. "Kill you!"  
Issac jumped back, dropping the broom and jumping onto it as Graham chuckled, starting to float.

"Honestly, I'm glad you dodged that. That would have been a rather short final boss fight if you hadn't." He chuckled and pulled a string off of the brown package, letting the paper fall away to show a long, black as blood sword in an equally dark sheath. "You know what this is? Here they call it Sunpō no burēka. Where I come from, they call it Breaker di dimensioni. You... you would call it The Breaker of Dimensions." He smiled, pulling the black blade free of its sheath. "It's a blade, made by a master sword smith using metal that just... appeared one day. This blade, your wrench, they are made of the same thing. The same metal in two different universes, crying out for each other. Very dramatic, don't you agree?" Graham looked to him, then gained a disappointed look on his face when he saw no reaction.

"Oh, Like I care what you think. You are the villain of this story, You could care less about how I'm doing this, you just want to stop me from showing Gensokyo true freedom. The kind of freedom th-" Graham ducked just in time, missing a wrench to the face. "Just like a villain to strike when I'm talking. It seems it's time for us to end this little game." Graham smiled, dropping the scabbard for the blade and holding it one-handed, the other hand glowing as Danmaku shots formed in his palm. The shots spread from his hand, causing Issac to do some fancy flying to avoid getting anything more than nicked. He groaned as one of his wounds were reopened by the shot, and held his hand over it.

"Oh, Right! You can't use Danmaku! That means I only have to hit you once." Graham smiled, rushing forward and slamming the hilt of the blade into Issac's gut, then slamming the flat of the blade into his head, sending Issac off the broom, and slamming into the ground. "What a disgraceful final boss. As a villain, you are sub-par at best. Such a cliché, trying to stop the progress of my dream." Graham descended to the ground, slowly walking over to Issac, then kicking him over onto his stomach. "Not a very tough opponent without your explosives are you? It was luck my soldiers found you out cold...I wanted this to be a fight of only our abilities, and as you can see, you don't measure up -" Graham stopped as he heard laughing. "What are you laughing about?!"

"I'm laughing-" Issac coughed up blood, putting his hand on the ground to lift himself up. "Because you don't see how ridiculous you sound." He coughed again before taking another kick, sending him over onto his back, groaning. "A villain who can't fight anymore making fun of the hero... I grow tired of these pleasantries." He practically spat the last word. " It is time for you to die Issac. I offered you chance after chance to join me...But now, " Graham formed a large ball of energy in his hand. "It is time for me to erase you from this tale." Graham threw the ball of energy, missing Issac by centimeters, but sending the wounded man off, into a building, which collapsed around him. "A stroke of luck... but he will not escape this." Graham growled, slowly walking to the rubble. There was a slight jingle, like someone collecting something in a game.

Graham smiled, spinning the blade in one hand as he walked to the rubble. "Well, as much fun as this has been Issac, we can't keep this up. People expect some sort of ending, and when I tell this story, I'll make sure everyone knows just what happened to the fool villain who opposed me. And I'll make sure that the people know who controls them...and I'll make sure that your Tengu friend knows exactly how much of a better man I am than you." Graham was standing on the rubble now, one foot on the ground, the other on top of a rock at the base of the pile. He taunted Issac with tales of what he would do to his friends, starting with how he would publicly execute the shrine maiden and the witch, moving on to how he would enslave the Kappa, and cut Nitori's hands off for aiding Issac, then finishing with how he would take Syrena as his wife when this was over, just to crush any hope of someone else rising up.

"And when she is mine, I will make sure she never forgets how badly you failed to save her. How you left her here to die and I saved her." Graham took a step back, then raised the blade. "Say hello to the ferryman for me!" Graham laughed, plunging the blade into the rubble, a bloodcurdling scream cut short, lasting from the blade entering the rubble, to it being sunk hilt deep. "And the villain falls." Graham smirked and pulled the blade from the rubble, wiping the blood off it. the rubble must have been larger than he thought, the blade was only halfway covered in blood. With a shrug, the madman wiped it off, then sheathed the blade before groaning, stumbling as he felt something hit his back. The spot tingled, and the air smelled of ozone. "Who dares...no.." Graham gasped, taking a step back.

Above the rubble, floating of his own powers, lightning surrounding him, was Issac, bloody, battered, a sword shaped hole surrounded by blood on his stomach. "You're wrong Graham. You are no hero," Issac said, his voice slightly pained as he gripped his wrench. "You're a madman, and Gensokyo...No, not just Gensokyo... No where deserves to be under the rule of a man like you. Gensokyo is free, a place where Tengu, Kappa, Human, and Youkai can all live together, and I'm not going to let you ruin that. two people got themselves hurt to give me the chance to come here and say this." Issac stepped down to the ground, his grip on the wrench now causing his knuckles to go white. "This place is not your playground, the people here are not your toys, and this is not your story. " Issac said as electricity gathered into a ball in his hands, one which he tossed into the air. "Rapture sign: Fall of a Mad king." Issac smiled, the ball of lighting striking out at different things on the mountain. Issac rushed forward, the wrench in his hands acting like a club.

The mountain went silent as Issac and Graham faced off, danmaku and lightning flying as they clashed, mystical steel clashing with mystical steel. Neither side seemed to falter, neither side seemed to tire, the battle a full stalemate until one intervened.

"Issac! Reimu freed Syrena!" Marisa yelled, having finally come back. Her shout distracted Issac just long enough for Graham finish what he had started before. The blade went through the same hole in Issac's shirt as before. "We are finished here." Graham said, smirking. "I-I agree." Issac smirked himself, then grabbed Graham's collar. "Rapture sign: Tomb for the damned. " Issac said as electricity struck around the two men, breaking the ground around them. "Marisa...Tell Syrena...I came back for her." He said, then the ground collapsed below them, sending them falling into a cavern in the mountain. "ISSAC!" Marisa yelled out from the edge of the ground, her voice drowned out by the sound of falling rocks.

Issac's eyes stung as he tried to open them. From the red he saw for a moment, the throbbing wound on his head, and the taste of copper in his mouth, his head was bleeding. Issac spat out some blood and tried to wipe his face, but his arms stung when he tried to move it. Something heavy held his arm down, and from the feeling of pain that started to blossom when he tried to move his arm, Issac guessed he had some bad wounds there. He took a pained breath, and laid his back on the rough rubble behind him. It hurt a little, but it wasn't too bad, compared to everything else. "Heh, déjà vu..." Issac chuckled, "It seems, this is really the end..." Issac felt his breath leaving him like it had in the other world. 'No one to save me this time.' Issac thought, slowly letting go of his final breaths. Before he lost consciousness, he could have sworn he heard a familiar voice.

" ...we found him!"


	14. Dirge of a Hero

Ch 14: The Dirge of a Hero

The pain was what woke him first. A gasp and a jolt, then a groan of pain that sent him back onto his back. The awareness the pain had brought him faded quickly, forcing him back into sleep. It was for the best.

The next time he woke was about 2 days later, the middle of the night, a candle in the room providing the only light. When he tried to sit up, someone put a hand to his shoulder, pushing him back down onto the bed. "Woah Woah. It's much too soon for you too be trying to sit up. Lay back. I'll get your friends." The woman said, easily holding him down by the shoulder. She walked to the small sliding door, and opened it, then stepped back, letting Reimu and Marisa inside the room, both of them looking happy to see him, Marisa looking a bit guilty as well.

"How are you feeling Issac?" Reimu asked, walking to the side of the bed and kneeling next to it. "Where am I?" Issac asked, looking around, not recognizing the room they were in. "You're in the Eientei." Reimu said then looked to The woman who had been there to let them in. "OK Eirin. We can handle him from here." She smiled, watching the other woman walk off.

"What happened...to Graham?" Issac said, keeping his words short. His entire body hurt, and speaking only made it worse. "Dead. Marisa wouldn't tell me what happened, but we found you both in a caver, under a pile of rubble." Reimu said, looking to Marisa, who had finally come over to sit next to the bed. "Looks like your a hero Issac." Marisa smiled guiltily.

"I didn't do anything. I don't even have any Danmaku...Marisa was the one who fixed everything. I just got in the way at the right time.." Issac said, leaving Marisa with a stunned look on her face. Reimu nodded and stood. "I have to see what the damage of the incident was...but thank you for helping us Issac. If you wish to go home, I will send you back when you are well enough, though, Gensokyo could use someone like you." She gave him a smile before she left, Marisa still in shock.

"What in the...WHAT?" She asked looking to him. "Issac, you are a hero! You not only fought through that army without Danmaku, but you saved all of us by nearly killing yourself! Why did-" Issac grabbed her arm and smiled. "Take the credit...I don't want it. I did what I felt was right, nothing more." He said and let go of her hand, rolling onto his side to sleep a little more. "Issac... you're a good man. I hope you stay safe in the outside world." Marissa said, looking around suspiciously when she was sure he was sleep, then giving him a quick kiss on the cheek, then leaving him to have pleasant dreams.

It was about three days before Issac could walk on his own again, even with Eirin's medical knowledge. It was then that they all gathered at the Shrine. Issac, Marisa, Reimu, Syrena, Nitori, and Yukari, all wanting to see Issac off. "I'll miss you all." Issac smiled as he gathered a couple of hugs from Syrena and Marisa, a high five from Nitori, a well done from Yukari, and a way home from Reimu. "Now, follow me. You'll probably pass out when we go through the barrier." She said and lead Issac off to the forest. "Issac. Thanks for helping us out." Reimu smiled and gave him a hug, then took his hand. "One more step and we'll be out of Gensokyo."

"I'll miss you all." Issac said. "Oh, don't worry, you'll see us again soon." Riemu said as Issac felt something pass over him, and he was out cold again.


	15. Return

ch 15: Return

When Issac awoke again, he was sitting in a clean white bed, in a clean white room. A single person sat inside the room, sleeping softly in the chair they had fallen asleep in. Issac was confused, what just happened? He sat up a little more, groaning in pain as a single person entered the room. "You should lay back down. Those injuries won't heal if you keep reopening them up." A woman in a white coat entered the room, putting a small folder in a slot on the door before closing it behind her. " I'm Dr. Yakumo." She held out a hand to him, letting him shake it before checking her clipboard.

"Seems you had a nasty fight with a drunk when you saw him attacking Miss Irosuka over there. Seems you had been talking to her, and offered to drive her home. She agreed and went out to your car while you paid the tab. When you got out of the bar, you saw one Graham Shepard trying to assault Ms. Irosuka, and you fought him off, at least until he pulled a knife and stabbed you, then ran." She said and looked up to him, adjusting her glasses and her hair. "You seem to have gotten off lucky. I'll have Nurse Hakurei make sure you are well enough to go." She said and turned, her purple scrubs seeming to blend with her white coat.

It wasn't long before Issac was being helped out of the Gensokyo memorial hospital by the woman he had 'saved.' "I feel like I've been in a dream for a few days..." He put a hand to his head. "Was it a good dream? Was I in it?" The woman asked. "Yeah, Yeah you were." He smiled and looked to her, watching as she leaned over, lightly kissing his lips. "Thank you for saving me." She smiled, then hugged him, kissing him again.

"So, how long before he figures out none of this was a dream?" Nurse Hakurei said as her clothing shifted back to the shrine maiden outfit, and the hospital faded. "Oh, I think he will find out when he marries the Tengu. They make such a cute couple." Yukari said, taking off the glasses. "Let us hope they are together for many long, happy years. Tea?"


End file.
